The Trickster's Lover
by lembasbreadmadebysoufflegirl
Summary: Loki has a childhood friend named Freya who keeps him from murdering people. So, yeah. A dumping-ground for all of my Loki feels. This goes from Loki's childhood to after the end of "Thor: The Dark World." I am not taking into account anything that may or may not happen in movies that have not yet come out. Rated M because reasons, and please R&R.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1:

I stepped onto the dias, out of the Bifrost, staring around at the dome that to me, a child, looked impossibly large.

"Welcome to Asgard, little one," came the deep voice of the gatekeeper, Heimdall. He looked kindly down at me with his golden eyes that bespoke his position, beneath his gilded helmet and above the sword that he used to open and close the Bifrost.

"Thank you," I said quietly.

There were sudden footsteps, and then a hooded figure appeared. The person was at least six inches taller than me, but when he spoke I realized that he must have only been a little older than me. "My father has sent me to bring her to the Palace."

Heimdall nodded. "Take her where you will," he replied, turning his gaze back to the spinning cosmos.

I quickly fell in step beside the boy as we walked down the bridge that seemed to have been enfused with rainbow. "My name is Freya," I said, trying for conversation.

The boy turned his head slightly, and I caught a flash of a grin in a pale face. "I know," he replied simply.

"You're Loki." It wasn't a question.

The boy stiffened, then relaxed and pulled his hood down with long, elegant fingers that reminded me of my own hands. "Yes," he agreed, looking at me with a mixture of hope and worry in his bright green eyes. "I am."

I took in his black hair, still close to his head in a little boy's cut, even though if he was older than me he had to be in his mid-teens. He had high cheekbones and a mischevious sort of set to his entire frame, like he found everything amusing and couldn't wait to trick everyone into believing something ridiculous before pulling it back and making then look like fools.

"I like you," I said simply, and another odd mixture of confusion and pleasure crossed his face.

"Thanks," he replied, sounding a little bemused. It was as if nobody had ever said that to him - or more like nobody liked him.

We walked in silence the rest of the way. I turned my head back and forth, my dark blue eyes flitting everywhere and my dark brown hair sliding around my shoulders as I tried to take in everything of Asgard.

We finally reached the Palace, then the throne room. With each step, Loki seemed to become more tense and more withdrawn, pulling himself inward and away from the world around him, as if he was afraid of rejection.

I watched him with concern, and then jerked my head up as I heard a rather arrogant voice say, "Who is this, Father?"

I noted that Loki flinched more than ever at the other boy's voice.

From behind a column stepped a boy about Loki's age, with blond hair and bright blue eyes and a slight smirk.

"This is Freya, Thor," replied Odin, from up on the throne. I could see Frigga standing beside him, looking resplendant in a blue dress. Thor walked up to join his father and mother on the dias, and Loki and I reached the base of it and stopped.

"Why is she here?" asked Thor.

I fixed him with a look of barely hidden loathing. "She can talk, you know," I informed him. "I'm here because my parents are dead and I am related to you, so your mother offered to take me in."

"How are you related to us?"

"Cousin would be the short answer," I replied.

I got a look of confusion from Odin and Frigga, and Loki whispered, "What's the long one?"

I sighed. "I - my biological mother died, and so my father, Tir, married Frigga's sister, and then both of them died and now I'm here. I'm sort of a step-cousin."

Thor wasn't listening. "Whatever," he said absently, then turned to his father and started babbling away.

Odin held up a hand to silence him for a moment, and told Loki, "Take Freya to her rooms. Frigga, you should probably go with them."

Frigga nodded and came down towards the two of us. I watched Thor launch back into his long gobbledegook of whatever he wanted to tell his dad, and then turned and followed Frigga and Loki.

Loki seemed to stop shrinking around Frigga, basically as soon as he was away from Odin and Thor. I frowned, but neither of my companions noticed, and so we continued on down a long hallway.

* * *

Years passed, and Loki and I grew into our twenties. The first day I was in Asgard, I stuck to Loki like glue, which seemed to bother him at first - his only comment for the whole day was, "I don't need two shadows."

The next day he seemed indifferent, and then slowly we became friends.

I was his only friend, the only person besides Frigga who could convince Loki that he was worth ten Thors, that Thor was an asshat and Loki didn't need to feel secondary. Well, that was really my convincing. Frigga spent her time trying to convince both boys that they were equals.

I spent all the time that I wasn't with Loki learning to fight, to be a woman warrior. Sif was my tutor, being a little older than me. She taught me how to fight, but also how to hold myself in such a way that nobody would scoff at a woman warrior.

My other training was with Frigga, who was teaching both me and Loki how to do her tricks. I could do the same things that Loki and his mother could, every bit, but I was behind in learning how.

Life passed, until after a long time it seemed that nothing bad could happen. Loki would come to me for advice, and I to him. We told each other the deepest, darkest things that resided within our hearts, and everything we didn't want anybody else to know. I was his confidante, and he was my confidant. The only ones each of us had.

The worst day of my life happened.

_We all stood in the throne room, dumbstruck as the messenger delivered his message. Apparently, the horse god_, _Svaolifari wished to take Frigga as his wife. And if she refused, she needed to go out anyway to "speak with him." Preferrably in horse form. _

_Frigga was being proper and saying, "Hell no." So I offerred up a good idea: "How about I go out in the form of a horse. I am unmarried, unpromised, it wouldn't be too much of an issue."_

_Loki shook his head. "Freya, no. Even if you could hold horse form long enough, I would say no," he vetoed._

_"What do you suggest, then?" I snapped back._

_He shrugged, then moved quicker than lightning, shoving me backwards against a column. My breath was knocked from my body, and while I was slightly incapacitated, he chained me there. "Now you can't follow," he said with a tiny smirk at me._

_I glared at him. "Don't you dare. Don't you _dare_." _

_But he was already turning away, and he was halfway out the door, his coat swishing behind him before he turned again. "Don't wait up," he ordered me._

_I offered him a half-smile, and then suddenly there was a horse where Loki had been, a black mare with green eyes that glinted even from where I was._

_Then he was gone._

_I screamed and tore at the chains, but nobody thought to take them off, because then I would run after him, and then Loki would murder whoever unchained me. _

_So I screamed myself hoarse and scraped my wrists raw and bloody on the cuffs Loki had created. My voice gave out after awhile, and my strength a little while later, but still nobody let me out because they a) thought my exhaustion was an act or b) knew that I would still run after Loki. _

_Near dawn, there were footsteps at the door, and then Loki, in normal form, stumbled in, looking exhausted, harrassed, and mentally scarred. However, he did seem triumphant. He almost smiled when his eyes lit on me, and he came over and unlocked my chains. As soon as it was done, I shoved him hard in the chest, knocking him back into a pillar of his own. While he looked surprised, I stormed off to my room._

_I stood in the center and screamed without any sound but a thin rasping noise, then snatched up my sword (named Bitre, or Biter in some languages) and started slamming on my bed-posts of the four-poster bed against the wall. _

_After about a minute, there was a gentle knock at the door. I turned and rasped, "Come in." It barely made any noise, and I knew the person on the other side would be unable to hear. So with a sigh, I sent a projection of myself out the door with a beckoning finger._

_The door swung quietly open, and then swung shut softly. I felt a gentle touch on my shoulder, and I knew immediately who it was. I shoved the sword back into its sheath and tossed it onto the bed, where it landed with a muffled thump._

_I turned to look at Loki, who was standing looking tired but happy to see me. "Are you alright?" he asked quietly._

_I shook me head and showed him my wrists, then pointed at my half-dead throat, then poked him in the chest with an accusing look. _

_He clucked his tongue and had me sit down on the edge of the trunk at the foot of my bed, producing a roll of white bandage from his pocket, along with a healing salve he had clearly stolen from the infirmary. He rubbed it on the bands of gently bleeding, raw skin and then wound the bandages around them, tying them off and weighing my smaller, limp hands in his. _

_"Thanks," I said, it coming out sounding like sandpaper._

_Loki offered a half-smile. "It was my fault, anyway." His green eyes were full of guilt, but not apology. "I would never have let you follow me," he said._

_I glared and croaked, "I could have dealt."_

_He gave me a raised-eyebrow look. "Do you realize how painful it would be to suddenly change into human form while canoodling with a gigantic horse?"_

_"I suppose you would know?" I asked, meaning it as a joke. He winced, and I decided not to push. "I know you wouldn't have let me, Loki. But I believe I could have coped. After all..." I hesitated, my hand against his cheek, then continued: "You may be bi, Loki, but you're male in your head. It has to be at the very least awkward."_

_He shrugged. "A shapeshifter like you or I is not held into their gender like everyone else. At least, not physically. Now stop using your voice. It'll just make it worse." _

_I made a face at him and pulled my hand away._

_Ten days later, I was locked in my room, screaming and banging on the door with my fists until they bled and other points (elbows, knees, feet) until they bruised. Why?_

_Because according to some reports, Loki was giving birth upstairs._

_After two hours, the door finally swung open. My sword pommel immediately flew out and thumped into the Asgardian warrior's head. Without a second look at his unconscious form, I turned and sprinted upstairs. _

_I slid into the throne room and immediately saw Loki in normal form, standing looking exhausted, scarred, and everything from before times ten. Next to him stood an eight-legged horse, whickering gently at his "mother." Loki spotted me and waved me over._

_I walked over and gestured at the horse, giving Loki a questioning look._

_He sighed. "You broke your voice again, didn't you?"_

_I nodded, and showed him my bleeding fists as well. _

_"Well, Freya, this is my son, Sleipnir."_

_"So, you actually gave birth," I rasped disbelievingly._

_Loki nodded. "You bet. Sleipnir, say hello." The horse made an odd noise and trotted forward awkwardly on its too-many feet, then licking my face in a very friendly way. _

_I nodded and giggled silently, patting his face._

_"He's gorgeous, isn't he? Aren't you, buddy?" cooed Loki, stroking Sleipnir's neck._

_I stared at Loki, acting like a real parent. I sighed, wishing somehow that I could have saved him the experience, even if Loki seemed okay. _

**HI! This is my lovely Loki/OC fanfic that I was thinking of after watching ****_Thor: The Dark World_****. I just had all these Loki feels, and I had put them somewhere, so...THIS. For any who've read my other fics, I know that this is my second fic with a main charrie named Freya, but the name seemed apt, so...yeah. Way fun. Hope you like! This is my way of trying to keep Loki from murdering so many people. So, a girl! WHEEEEE. I just love Loki so much. Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two:

Things moved swiftly, and soon it had been a couple more years. It was a week before Thor was to be announced officially as the heir to the Asgardian throne, and Loki was folding in on himself worse than ever, throwing up imagined shields around himself.

I stood next to him on a balcony, watching the darkness below. "I can feel their dislike for me, feel my rejection," I said quietly.

Loki sighed. "They don't reject you. They reject me, and you because you are always by my side. Perhaps it would be better for you if you weren't."

I shook my head. "Never, Loki. If they don't like you, then somebody's got to, and I can't help it anyway. Even if I wanted to stay away from you, I would be drawn back, like a moth to a flame - I don't get it, but I cna't say I don't like it."

He responded with a tiny smirk and began, "But -"

"No buts," I interrupted. "None. I don't want to hear them. I am your friend, Loki, and I will _not_ just leave you because you think I'd be _safer_. It's too late for that." I turned and looked straight at his bright green, and right now disbelieving, eyes. "If I'm going to be cast out - if I'm going to fall from grace, I want to fall with someone." I stepped a little closer to him. "At least I'm not falling alone."

Loki didn't reply, but looked like he was fighting some hidden impulse. Then, suddenly, he bent his head slightly and pressed his lips against mine.

He was all awkard and confused, like he'd never done it before. Smirking against him, I fisted my hands in his coat and pressed my mouth harder against his. His hands found home on the back of my neck and the small of my back, and I slowly moved one of my hands up his neck and into his hair. My lips parted under his pressure, his mouth hungry against mine -

And then I pulled back, leaning my forehead against his collarbone, leaving my hands where they were. I could feel Loki's wild hearbeat from where my head rested, and I could feel his uneven breathing ruffling my hair. I was panting slightly, as if I had been running.

I looked up at his face, saw that his eyes were dark with his pupils' dilation and there was a flush high in his cheekbones. I wondered what I looked like.

"Loki," I choked out, but nothing else came out because he had leaned down to capture my lips again and this time I let him stay that way. We stood there for a long time - minutes, hours, days, finding out new things about each other that we had never known before; a first.

Suddenly, footsteps invaded, and I accidentally shoved Loki backwards from where one of my hands still resided, despite its previous exploration of Loki's chest, neck, hair, back.

I looked around, saw Frigga hiding a smile at the foot of the dias that was the balcony. "You have been gone for awhile," was her only comment. Then she turned, throwing the words, "Hurry up or you'll miss dinner," over her shoulder as she left.

I stared at Loki, and he stared at me, both of us still breathing hard. After a moment, I started laughing, and he happily followed suit. "Why - didn't we realize this - earlier?" I gasped around giggles, doubled over and wheezing, already suffering from lack of air.

Loki shook his head, barely able to breathe, let alone speak. "I - don't," he spluttered, and after a few moments it died and I reached out and took his hand.

"Dinner?" I asked, barely keeping back a smile.

In contrast, he let his grin free. "After you."

**The only reason I'm updating is for you, Panwyn, so, yeah. Enjoy! Have fun reading!**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

Later that night, Loki and I went back to the balcony to chat some more. It involved more kissing than chatting, but after a little while, we did manage to string together a conversation.

Loki started it by saying something about Thor and how much better he must be at this. He said it half jokingly, but there was bitterness there, too, because for his entire life Thor had been top of the heap and Loki was shoved to the bottom of the pile.

I fixed Loki with a true, honest gaze. "Loki. You are basically the bravest man I have ever met. Literally. So why do you keep comparing yourself to Thor?"

He made a face. "Everyone, since we were little kids, liked Thor better than me. Loved him, always, and shunned me. Everyone but you and Mother, and every day I wait for one of you two to realize that everyone else is right, that Thor is better and more worthy of your love."

I reached forward and curled my hands in his jacket again. He stared down at me, speechless, as I growled lowly, fiercely, "Loki, I don't love Thor, I love _you_. When are you going to get that through your head? I have always loved you, always. You always compare yourself to Thor, and you shouldn't. You're so brave, so amazing at everything that he is _and better_. Especially considering that, often at least, he acts like a horrible bastard. Who dealt with the whole thing with the giant horse? You. You defended your mother's honor, and what did Thor do? He sat back and didn't do a damn thing. Trust me, Loki, if I was ever going to love a man, it would be you."

Loki pressed his forehead against mine. I knew from experience that in situations such as his, there was nothing that you could say in reply, so I let him keep his silence.

We sat there without words for a long time, until some unseen and unspoken signal made us stand up in unison. I kissed him goodnight, and we went in opposite directions to bed.

* * *

I stood before Odin, wishing I could slap his kingly face.

He had woken me up early, for starters on his sins. Then he had had someone bring me into the throne room to stand before his thrice-damned dais. And I was angry before I even heard what he had to say.

"Freya, as one of my only two female warriors, I am sending you to Vanaheim, and after that, to Nidavellir, and then to Alfheim. They are... disagreeing. They need someone to settle it. You are the wisest warrior, and thus sending you would result in a lack of violence," Odin informed me, in a tone that distinctly discouraged argument.

I didn't care. "You're kidding, right?" I snapped. "Those realms haven't fought for _years_!"

"A year for those as long-lived as us is the space between a heartbeat and another."

_"I don't care!"_ I snarled, hurling my words at him as if they were weapons. "You're going to make me miss Thor's big day, aren't you? How long am I to be away?"

He shrugged. "Not long. Three weeks, perhaps four."

"It is enough," I growled. "When would I leave?"

"You _will_ leave in four days, the day before Thor's naming as my heir," replied Odin, clearly trying to make it obvious that I was not to argue any longer.

I glared fiercely at him. "Fine," I said at last, realizing finally that it would be useless to fight any longer. He would not shift his position. "But you must not expect me to be pleased about this."

Odin smiled rather predatorily. "Oh, I knew you wouldn't. This does not necessarily require your willing participation. I know that even if you wish not to go, you shall do your very best to avoid war. And anyway, I order you to do your best. And I am your king. Your warrior's oath requires you to obey my every command."

I shook my head at his arrogance, seeing where Thor inherited it, and stormed out of the throne room, my cloak swishing behind me as my fist clenched and unclenched on the pommel of my sword and I fought back frustrated tears.

* * *

I was walking down one of the longer corridors, pacing and pacing in circles, over and over again. Nobody had seen me that day since Odin had called me in, and I didn't feel like talking to anybody.

Suddenly, there were light footsteps around the corner of the hallway, and I froze in my tracks. I knew the owner of those feet like I knew myself -

And just as I thought about it, around the corner came Loki with his soft tread, his face brightening as he saw me. "Hello, Freya!" he said joyfully.

I forced a smile onto my face. "Hey, Loki," I replied, managing a laugh. "You're wearing your helmet," I pointed out fondly. I happened to love that helmet.

He nodded. "Yes." He suddenly frowned. "You look unhappy, Freya." He took a step closer, slid his hand to the side of my neck, his thumb resting on my cheek. "Are you alright?"

I swallowed, then pressed my hand against his. "Yeah," I said, closing my eyes, then opening them, blinking sleepily. "Just a little tired."

He responded with a small smile and turned his hand in a slightly complicated way so it took mine and swung down between us. "Come on, you'll miss supper," he said softly, pressing a quick kiss against the corner of my mouth.

I grinned at him. "Yeah, let's go."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

Three days later, though, I couldn't remain silent anymore. I sat on the balcony with Loki again, and he continued to pester me about whether I was okay. I had been able to tell that he knew I was lying. He knew I was hiding something, but he didn't seem to mind - he knew that I didn't want to trouble him, because he couldn't do anything, knew that I would tell him when I was ready. And whenever I told him I was fine, after the first time, he replied softly, "I know you're not." I could never find a suitable response, however, so Loki would sit back and wait for the next time.

Finally, he asked one last time: "Freya, are you sure you're alright?"

I smiled tightly, because despite how much I didn't want him to know, I admired his persistence and I loved him so much for being concerned that I felt my heart would burst. "No," I finally admitted.

"What's wrong?" he asked gently.

"I -" I looked up miserably at his bright green eyes. "You remember, three days ago, when you found me pacing?"

He nodded.

"That morning - Odin's sending me to Vanaheim. And Nidavellir. And Alfheim. One right after the other, because he says they're fighting and he needs me to patch it up. I won't be back for weeks, and I feel like - something _huge_ is going to happen sometime soon, and I don't want to leave you here alone. Not for Thor's 'big day,' not for whatever's coming. I just don't want to leave." I hugged myself miserably.

Loki looked troubled. "Those realms haven't fought in years," he commented quietly, unknowingly echoing my protest to Odin. Then he leaned forward and grasped my hand, staring straight at my eyes to make sure I couldn't look away and forget about the honesty they held. "Honestly, Freya, I appreciate that you don't want to leave me. I do. But if Father says you need to go, you do."

"What about this whole -" I struggled for the right word, " - intuition I've got? Something really big is going to happen, Loki, and people are going to die." I stared miserably at him. "I don't want you to be one of them."

Loki chewed his lip, an unconscious habit when he was trying to make a decision. "What about Thor?" he asked, sounding hesitant.

"What about him?" I replied, sharper than I'd meant to.

Loki continued doggedly, "Maybe he could help. Talk sense into Father, right?"

I nodded reluctantly. "It's worth a shot."

* * *

Ten minutes later, I knocked hesitantly on the door to Thor's chambers. "Come in!" he roared, and I gently slid open the door.

"Cousin!" he laughed. "What a pleasant surprise!"

"Er, right," I muttered. "Thor, listen, I need your help.

"With what?" he asked, frowning.

"Odin has decided that he is sending me to Vanaheim, and other realms for patching up of some disputes," I said quietly. "I don't want to go, and I don't think it's necessary that I do, because everyone knows that Vanaheim, Nidavellir and Alfheim haven't fought in some time. I was hoping you could talk him into letting me stay."

Thor shook his head. "No, cousin, I could not go against the wishes of our king, my father."

I pursed my lips in exasperation. "Please?"

"Why do you want to stay?" he countered.

"I -" I didn't bother trying to tell him about my thoughts on what might happen. "I want to be here for your naming as the heir. And I don't want to leave - certain people."

"Like who?" snapped Thor, suddenly impatient.

I groaned frustratedly. "Okay, do you know I'm not related to you?"

"You are not my cousin?" He sounded disbelieving.

"No. I told you this the first day I got here. I'm sort of your step-cousin. My mother was married to the man who married Frigga's sister after I was born. They're all dead _now_, but still." I was just as impatient as he. I _knew_ he hadn't been listening to me that day.

Thor frowned some more. "Why does this matter?"

"Because _this_," I snapped, and I raised my voice: "_Loki_! Get in here!"

The door swung softly open behind me, and I could picture Loki's face - a mixture of confusion, apprehension, and all-around adorable concern. "You called, Freya?"

I nodded, and he came to stand beside me.

Thor looked confused. "I don't see -"

I sighed exasperatedly. "You wouldn't." I turned sharply and stood on my toes, grasping Loki's shirtfront for support, and pressed my lips against his.

He stood stiffly for a second in surprise, and then he bent his head, causing me to not have to stand on the balls of my feet, and my lips just started to part under his pressure -

Thor's voice cut through: "I understand now!"

I pulled away from Loki, forcing my expression into angry and defiant and trying to ignore the tiny noise of protest that Loki had made. "Good."

Thor looked angry. "So you are my brother's lover."

I laughed. "One way to put it, I suppose."

"For how long?"

"None of _your_ business," I replied. "But not long. However, you do know that we have been friends since I got here."

Thor shrugged. "I do not pay attention."

"Damn good for you that Loki and I do, then," I muttered.

Thor sighed. "I will not help you, cannot go against the wishes of your king, regardless of your -" he looked at Loki in a slightly disgusted way that made my blood boil, " - relationship with my brother."

I took three long strides forward until I was about two feet in front of him. Then I stepped forward one more time and screamed, so loud that he stumbled back and Loki winced and covered his ears, _"Someday, Thor Odinson, you will pay for your stupidity!"_

Then I spun on my heel and stalked out of the room. Loki seemed to make a weird face and then waved awkwardly at his brother before bolting after me.

I sprinted down the hall, hearing Loki's light footfalls behind me, finally stopping not far from his room. I sat down heavily on a bench, and Loki, breathing kind of hard, sat next to me.

We sat in silence for a moment. Then Loki said, "I'm sorry. That was kind of useless."

I nodded wordlessly, not really trusting myself to speak. But it turned out that I couldn't keep tears back anyway, and they slid silently down my cheeks for a minute before I actually started crying. "I don't want to go," I whimpered, curling into a ball.

Loki wrapped his arms around me and let me rest my head on his shoulder, and after a few minutes it stopped. I laughed wetly. "Sorry I got your shirt all wet."

He shrugged. "It's not that bad."

I sighed. "It must seem weird, that I'm so worked up about this," I said quietly.

Loki shook his head. "Not really. You've always been someone whose emotions - don't rule you, exactly, but to you they're very important and powerful and mean something. You don't hide how you feel or who you are, and I think that's because of two main things: You don't care what they think, usually, and you know you could kick their ass if they commented that they didn't like it. And you always have good reasons for everything."

I stared at him. Despite that it happened all the time, I still got surprised when Loki seemed like he could stare into my soul. "Yeah," I said quietly. "I honestly can't help this, because I feel that something big is coming." I felt like a soothsayer, one who was doomed to repeat her prophecies over and over and over again. "Something is going to happen, something huge, something incredible that nobody will believe or think is possible."

Loki looked unhappy, and it took me only a second to figure out why.

"And, of course, I'm going to miss you," I told him, as if it were obvious. "Also, I _really_ don't want to leave you alone for whatever mess is going to happen, because I don't think that it will go well, whatever _it_ is."

Loki leaned back against the wall, resting his head with a loud sigh. "I don't know what to do, Freya."

"There's nothing you can do," I said, but although the words were sad, I was feeling alright. Loki could tell, and he looked confused.

I laughed. "I've still got one last night with you."

Loki's gaze intensified, sharpened, as if he were more on alert. "How were you planning to say goodbye?" he asked, and I could hear a gentle undercurrent of _want_ under his voice.

I smiled, all predatory and wolfish. "I think you know," I replied softly, and then a few seconds later, his mouth was against mine. I slid my hands up over his chest, to the back of his neck while one of his curled in _my_ hair, pulling my face closer to his. His mouth was hungry against mine, searching for something and it took me only a second to realize what it was. I parted my lips beneath his pressure, and we explored each other's mouths, uncharted territory for both of us.

I suddenly pulled backwards, and Loki groaned, not wanting me to stop. I giggled rather breathlessly. "We can't do this in a _hallway_, Loki," I pointed out.

He stared at me, the green in his eyes nearly swallowed by the black, his breath incredibly uneven. There was a small dark line on his lower lip, and I couldn't remember whether he had bitten it or I had. "Fine," he said at last.

He suddenly darted forward and scooped me up into his arms, bridal style. I yelped, and he laughed. I looped my hands around the back of his neck, throwing my head back to laugh with him. He took long, quick strides down the hall - towards his room.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5:

I woke up feeling warm, warmer than I had ever felt upon waking. I then became conscious that my left arm was draped lazily over something really warm, and it was gently rising up and down.

I cracked open the eye that wasn't smushed against a pillow, and the first thing I saw was Loki lazily grinning sideways at me.

I sat straight up, using my arm for support, causing Loki to grunt and double over, sitting up involuntarily as my hand dug into his bare chest. "Sorry," I muttered.

He didn't seem to care, just grinned at me. I breathed out slowly, then narrowed my eyes at Loki, realizing that he was staring at me. "Oi, eyes front, soldier," I growled, sliding off of the bed and hunting around for my clothes.

He laughed and laid back again, his eyes following me around the room. Once I was dressed enough (in pants and a shirt, basically) I slid back into the bed. It seemed that we were playing a game of "I'll get up, you keep the bed warm, I'll be back in a minute," because Loki heaved himself out of the bed with a grunt and performed his own search before coming back.

I rolled over and looked at him. He was lost in thought, staring at the ceiling without really seeing it. I had a good side-profile of his face, and it actually made me ridiculously happy that I could just lay here, staring at him, doing nothing more than watching. A really fun activity, Loki-Watching.

"You're staring at me," he observed softly, not removing his eyes from the ceiling.

I grinned sheepishly. "Yeah," I admitted.

"I'm going to miss you," he said quietly, and the grin slid off my face.

"I'm going to miss you, too," I told him, wishing more than anything that I could stay.

Another few minutes passed, and then there was a loud thud against the door. I sat bolt upright, hearing a voice call, "Loki, do you know where Freya is?"

I threw him a desperate look, but Loki looked relaxed and whispered, "Hang on." He looked as if he were concentrating, and I knew he was performing an illusion.

We sat perfectly still as a projection of Loki (one dressed normally) opened the door and proclaimed that he had no idea where Freya was, that I was probably out sulking in the gardens or something. The door then closed with a soft thud and the illusion melted away, leaving an empty room again.

I leaped out of the bed and threw on my armor, buckling my sword to my hip. Loki was doing a similar dance on the other side of the room, and within seconds we were both ready.

I took a deep breath, then threw a glamor over myself - I had always imagined it as pulling a blanket around my body to shield myself from the prying cold.

Loki looked me up and down. "That'll get you to the garden," he predicted.

I looked down at myself. I looked like a typical Asgardian warrior - male and covered in armor, carrying a spear.

"It would be really awkward if I kissed you like this," I said with a crooked grin. I was pleased to hear that it was my normal voice - I had never tried this before except in lessons with Frigga, and she never required us to talk.

Loki grinned back. "Nah, it wouldn't be that bad."

I laughed and turned myself invisible, still keeping the glamor. "No way are they ever going to let you live it down if anyone sees a warrior coming out of your room," I pointed out.

I stepped out of the room and we began walking down the hall, Loki apparently alone. I dropped back a few yards behind him, letting go of the invisibility so it looked fairly normal: the God of Mischief striding purposefully down the hallways towards the gardens and your regular Asgardian warrior following him at a safe distance. I molded my face into one of wariness as I followed Loki, as if the warrior I was portraying was following him on someone's orders and was scared that Loki might be angry.

We reached the gardens, and I peeled off right and found one of my more secret clearings, then switched into myself. I was confident that if they were searching the gardens, they would not have come here yet. It was a gorgeous little square of cobblestone, with ten-foot-tall hedges along the edges (see what I did there?) and trees bursting out among the stones. There was a gorgeous, simple fountain in the middle and a bench that I now sat on.

Loki was the only one who knew about the little clearing, although if one followed the right paths you could get to it. Just as I was thinking about it, he strode into the clearing and sat down next to me.

I released the glamor, and we sat and waited, like it was a Midgardian game of Hide-and-Seek, not moving in the hopes that they would give up finding us and we would win.

While we waited, I said quietly, "Loki?"

"Mhm?" He continued to stare at the bushes with a look of serenity, although his entire body was tense with something I couldn't name.

"Promise you'll come and visit. Every night."

"Sorry?" he replied, clearly confused. He snapped his head around to look at me in bewilderment.

"I know I won't be gone for long, but you can project that far, right?" I asked nervously.

He rubbed his forehead. "So long as I'm not keeping up a glamor or an illusion at the time, yes. But you won't be gone for that long -"

"I don't care," I interrupted, reaching down and taking his hand. "I'm not clingy, Loki, you know that, but something -" I hesitated, " - I just want to be sure you're okay."

He nodded, but it wasn't enough.

_"Promise me,"_ I said intensely, fixing his green eyes with my blue-grey.

"I promise," he replied, unable to remove his gaze from mine. We sat in silence for a few more minutes. I did not remove my hand from his.

A few minutes later, Odin rounded the corner with a face that could have murdered. I surreptitiously let go of Loki's hand. Odin spoke, his voice vibrating with fury. "Freya. Loki. Where have you been?"

"I _told_ you, Odin," I snapped. _"I don't want to go."_ I stood, my cloak swishing around my ankles. I was short, yes, but so was Odin, and I was wearing boots that made me two inches taller than I really was. And I was so angry, I seemed to grow a couple more inches until I basically towered over him.

Odin snorted. "You think you can scare me. You are my warrior, Freya, and you must leave when I tell you."

I let out a feral snarl, but he was right. "You can make me go. You can't make me like it. I'll be along in a minute."

Odin turned and strode off.

I turned back to Loki, who had stood up. "I'll see you, a sort of you. Tonight."

He let out a tiny grunt of frustration, and took a swift step forward. His mouth came down on mine, and I melted into him, my hands fisting in his shoulders as I gave a tiny groan. After a moment, I pulled away, breathing hard. "I'll see you," I told him.

"I promise you will," he replied.

I turned, uncertain of how and unable to say goodbye any other way. He solved it for me, and waved me to go.

And so I left Asgard for the first time in so many years, just to keep Odin happy.

If only I hadn't left. Maybe then things wouldn't have been shot to hell.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6:

I lazed about in Vanaheim, wishing that something would happen. As I had expected, Odin had been lying that they had been fighting. It was a minor disagreement that had taken an hour to sort out, so now I was trapped on Vanaheim for four weeks until Odin would deem it okay to come home.

Just as I was thinking about it, a hazy Loki-sized green blob appeared in the open floor of my bedroom that the natives had so very kindly given to me. I shoved myself up and off of the bed where I was lounging, and stood eagerly in front of the projection that was taking shape.

He finally finished materializing, and I resisted the urge to throw myself at him. I knew how difficult it was to hold up just the image of something from any distance (although Asgard to Vanaheim wasn't terribly far) and having to deal with the feel of something just made it harder. Often, when you touched a projection, it just melted away.

"Hi," I said happily, standing awkwardly in the middle of the room. I realized it didn't matter whether Loki could hold the projection long enough for me to touch him - I still wanted to throw myself at him more than it was actually possible to say.

Loki solved my problem by coming towards me for a hug. I was stunned to find that he didn't disappear, and his armor was cold and hard beneath my hands, as it should have been.

"How are you doing that?" I asked, sounding a little confused.

"Oh! Right. It's actually me, here, talking to you. I left a projection behind, you see, a really lovely one, and -"

"You mean you _teleported here_?" I asked incredulously. It was an advanced magic, one that Frigga had taught us the principles us but warned us was a useful but foolhardy road to take. It was absolutely disastrous should you do it wrong, and you could end up leaving part of yourself behind and become trapped in limbo.

Loki shrugged. "It is far easier than Mother made it out to be."

"It doesn't matter how easy it is! We, the two of us, we're _really_ powerful, Loki. That means almost all magic feels easy to us. But that doesn't mean it isn't dangerous. You could die."

He responded with a roguish grin. "Well, then, if I risked so much to get here, you would think I would get a warmer welcome."

I sighed frustratedly, stamping my foot for emphasis. "Fine, you menace," I whispered with a contradictory grin. I stood on my toes and kissed him, then stepped back and said, "There. Your warm welcome. Do with it what you will."

He laughed, but I looked at his eyes for the dilation that I kept seeing - and there it was. I hid a smile. "You know what I think you should do, Freya?" he asked me.

"No, Loki, I have no idea."

"You should go to Midgard."

_"Midgard?"_ I asked incredulously, just to make sure.

"Yes. Midgard," he replied, sounding quite animated on the subject. "It's interesting there. You could -"

"Interesting," I interrupted. "That's your reason for me to go to Midgard?"

He nodded, tilting his head at me as if asking why I was being so thick.

I chuckled. "Okay, but you won't be able to visit me there."

"And whyever not?" he asked me.

"Because. You're not allowed to interfere with Midgardian things, because they are the only realm that knows nothing of us. It's against the rules to -"

I was stopped by a long, pale finger against my lips, stilling their motion. "Please," Loki said exasperatedly, rolling his eyes. "You're telling me you and I can't do it because it's _against the rules_?"

I sighed. "I'm already here because Odin's angry at me for some reason. Now what? If I go to Midgard at all, and you teleport there, or project there, we'll both get into huge heaps of trouble."

Loki laughed again, but it was kind of bitter. "Odin no longer cares what we do. He cares only for Thor," he informed me.

I swallowed, then whispered, "Loki, trust me, he's only ever cared about Thor. You and I were like a backdrop, a curtain, that threw Thor into even better light."

Loki turned his head away slightly, as if he could get away from his father's indifference by looking away from it.

"Hey," I said softly, reaching out for his chin and turning his head back to look at his eyes. "You've known this your whole life. What's wrong?"

"What's wrong is that my father does not value me, despite my obvious intellectual superiority over Thor," he growled in return. "Without a father's love, what does a man have?"

"Oh, Loki," I whispered in reply. "You should know by now that at least I will never leave your side." With that I reached up and kissed him, cutting off his airy chuckle and catching him mid-shaky smile.

I knew his smile so well. I had seen sides to Loki that nobody had ever dreamed existed. I remembered going to a soothsayer on Anaheim before I had come to Asgard again.

_I stepped warily around the curtain, conscious that the woman that waited for me could tell me things that would ruin my life forever._

_She sat at the table in the middle of a darkened room. Her features were remarkably unremarkable, compared with others of similar professions. "Freya," she greeted me warmly. "The girl who returns to her home soon."_

_I sat with a thump in the seat opposite her. "Home? I'm going back to Asgard?"_

_She nodded, then said, "We get ahead of ourselves." She reached for a pouch on the table, but I slammed my hand down on it first._

_"I thought only Midgardians did fortune-telling," I said quietly. "Why did you ask me here?"_

_She studied me for a moment. "So hurt, so weary, for one so young," she murmured, watching my face. "Yes, little one. But it is a noble profession, given that it is useful and nobody else does it." She gave a tiny smirk. "You are here because you will be important, Freya. Now hands off, you're crushing the knucklebones."_

_I whipped my hand off of the pouch at the word "bones," but when she upended it over the table a pile of very odd-looking bones indeed toppled out. _

_"These are the knucklebones of a dragon," she answered my unspoken question. "Put your hand over them."_

_I carefully placed my hand on top of them for a few moments, and then she pulled them out from under my palm and shook them like dice in her clasped hands. Then she rolled them loosely across the table and stared at them for a long while. _

_I sat silently, not knowing what was happening._

_Finally, she reached behind her and pulled out a flask of brandy, raised it to her lips and drank. "Your future is tangled, little one," she rasped at last. "Perhaps because it tangles with many others, despite your not dealing with any but two, at first."_

_I leaned forward. "Tell me."_

_She looked at me for a long moment, then nodded decisively. What she had decided was unclear. "You go home very soon, but in the midst of a tragedy. It will not hurt you greatly, for it will send you back to Asgard. You will meet two young princes there."_

_"Will one of them -"_

_"Yes," she replied, as if reading my mind. I bit my lip as she continued, "Death is not a barrier, my dear. If you ever get the chance to go to Midgard, do it. And whatever you do," - she leaned forward across the knucklebone-littered table - "_Do not_ let your man commit murder._

_"He is a trickster, but he is loyal and true and will be so for you. Stay with him no matter who or what tries to part the two of you. Give it time, though, dear. His grin is his biggest lie."_

I shook off memories and Loki pulled back, resting his forehead against mine. "I have to go to Midgard," I whispered.

He sighed. "I know. And I can't come, you're right."

We sat down on the bed, because we had time. Just a little bit. I leaned against Loki, my head on his shoulder. "What now?" I asked softly.

"You need to leave. Again," replied Loki, sounding resigned.

"While I'm gone, try to convince Odin to bring me back," I said quietly.

Loki nodded, and I felt his chin brush against the top of my head. "I will, but it will be difficult."

"Try Frigga, first, have her say something. She has twice as much pull over Odin than the two of us combined will ever have."

He nodded again, agreeing. "I'll try, Freya. Have fun on Midgard."

I grinned. "Oh, I will."

"Don't fall in love with any mortals."

"I won't, I promise."

Ten minutes later, with Loki's help, I teleported to Midgard. I spent the next few weeks there, unbeknownst to most, and learned everything I could about Midgardian culture. Needless to say, it was both a trying and simple time.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7:

At the end of my stay on Midgard, I felt a nasty pang of horror resonate throughout my soul. I sprinted to get out of general populace (I was in London at the time), and found myself in a field. I took a deep breath, desperate to center myself. I knew that there was only one thing that the feeling could have been - Loki was in danger.

I concentrated hard, and then felt myself dematerialize. I experienced a second of gut-wrenching terror as I felt that my molecules would not reassemble, and then the world around me stopped spinning and formed into something interpretable.

I looked around wildly. I was on the weird river that happened to be in Asgard, under the rainbow bridge. I was standing on a rock, overlooking the waterfall that led to empty space.

I gasped as I saw that just one rock ahead of me, Odin was standing, holding onto the end of his staff. Thor was hanging off the end of it, and I heard him shout, _"No, Loki!"_

And then I heard a sort of sigh, and I knew immediately what happened. Thor and Loki, for whatever reason, had fallen off the edge of Asgard. Odin had caught Thor with his staff (well, Thor had caught Odin's staff) and then grabbed hold of Loki's staff. Then Loki had let go.

My feet were moving before I actively decided to decided to go. I leaped over to their rock and skidded to a stop next to Odin, who was in the process of hoisting up Thor. "Why aren't you trying to help him?" I asked in a vicious snarl. "Why aren't you doing anything?"

Odin fixed me with his patented _I-don't-care-about-you_ look. "Freya, do not presume to lecture me in my conduct with my son. It is neither your business, nor is it in either of our abilities to change what he has done."

I sent a wordless snarl at him and spared only the time that it took to marvel at a change in Thor before I leaped off of the rock, falling after the receding green, gold and black form that was Loki.

Unlike Loki, who fell gracefully, like a fallen angel, my arms pinwheeled and my legs flailed as a scream ripped free of my throat. Apparently, this made me fall faster, because I reached Loki and we began to fall together.

"How come we're not dead yet?" I asked. I had expected resistance in speaking due to lack of molecules in the "air," but we could talk as easily as we did in rooms or on land.

Loki looked confused. "I don't know," he replied. "It seems that we are still technically on a planet, as if we have been dropped from far above Asgard. That and the gravity is messed up, too. We should not be falling. Or breathing. Or talking. And you also should not be here, Freya." He stared at me.

"I - I had this sort of wrenching feeling in my stomach-area, and I couldn't _actually_ control myself, because I knew, just _knew_ that you were in danger. So I teleported to Asgard and then I heard what was happening, and you fell and I just sort of - jumped after you."

Loki managed a smile for me.

Just then, as I began to make peace with our fate of falling through space forever, a huge gap yawned "below" us in space. "Loki?" I asked nervously.

"Yeah, I see it," he replied, and I heard the strain of worry in his voice.

"What is it?"

"It's a wormhole," he replied tightly. He reached out and grabbed hold of my hand, pulling me close to himself. I wrapped my arms around him and pressed myself completely against him.

"What does it do?" I asked stupidly, my voice muffled slightly by his shoulder.

"It transports you somewhere. They are hidden gateways, through space, that can theoretically bring you anywhere. Also theoretically, they are specific passageways from one place to another, completely set in stone and not at all random." He paused. "We have literally no way of knowing where this one will end up."

I swallowed, and turned my head so that my face was actually buried in the fabric of his shirt.

There was a loud roaring sound and my hair whipped around my head as we fell into the hole in the fabric of the universe, and then everything became blacker than black as I passed out.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8:

**Loki's POV:**

I somehow managed to land in a crouch on the ground of a very odd planetoid world, supporting Freya.

I slowly stood up, holding Freya bridal-style to keep her from having to lay on the dusty, rocky ground beneath us. "What is this place?" I asked softly.

For a moment, there was silence. Then a hoarse, male, and distinctly alien voice replied, "You are nowhere, young god."

I jumped slightly, my boots scuffing on the hard ground. "Who are you?"

"I am no one. But you - you are somebody. You will be _useful_."

Freya came to with a tiny gasp, her entire body going rigid in my arms as she jerked her head up. "What -"

_"Shh,"_ I hissed, but it was too late.

"So there is another." There was amusement in the voice now. "Why are you here, little godlings?"

Freya growled, "Let me down, Loki, please." I gently set her on her feet, and unsteadily she swayed and grabbed at my shoulder. "What do you want us for?" she asked, loud enough that our host would hear.

"Do you really wish to know?"

It was starting to sound like his voice was emanating from the rocks around us. "Yes. We do wish to know," replied Freya.

"Then I shall tell you. There is a planet called Midgard, by your people, but Earth by its inhabitants. Oddly enough, it is not strictly part of the Asgardian format of the Realms, but it is included in your worlds because of its 'cultural significance.'" His voice was full of mocking and dripping with sarcasm. "There are people there that threaten the continuing peace of the universe."

"No there aren't," Freya snarled in reply. "I've been there, _sir_, and I can tell you _right now_ that all they are is curious and confused."

"They seek answers that are not theirs."

"They seek the truth!" Freya yelled in reply, and I was actually surprised to see an incredible amount of fury and passion in her stance. Then I looked at her for a long moment, realizing just how much her time on Midgard had seemingly changed her. A pang resonated through my chest as I wondered just how much.

"How wrong you are," hissed the voice. "They seek to control all. This race exists to destroy. They cannot create."

"_You're_ wrong," snarled Freya, and I began to notice that she was dressed differently, as well. She had on the blue pants made of denim that the mortals would wear, and she was soft-looking brown boots that almost went up to her knees. A long black trench coat, unbuttoned, flapped about her ankles. She also was wearing a blue scarf tied around her neck and a simple-colored T-shirt. One thing hadn't changed - around her waist was buckled a heavy leather belt, and a sword hung off her left hip with a dagger on her right. The unmistakable signs of knives in her boots were ever-present. Her dark hair was plaited, halfway down her back. I slowly refocused on her words to hear her saying, "- they create, every day, something new. They contribute to this universe with everything they do, and they are selfless, beautiful creatures."

"You say this applies to all the race?" asked the creature that spoke.

"Does anything?" asked Freya by way of an answer, crossing her arms over her chest.

"We waste time," hissed the creature, but it seemed to me more like he was giving up. "You are not here to argue about whether it is morally proper to take over a planet of weaklings."

_"They're not weak!"_ shouted Freya, but the thing that spoke to us made no sign of having heard.

"You are here for a reason, little godlings." I winced, wishing he would stop calling us that. "You are here because I need you here. I had hoped for one, but two - two means _leverage_."

That didn't sound good, but I didn't have time to think about it for long before a helmeted warrior stepped close and shoved me off towards a pile of rocks, almost separating me from Freya. Another one reached for her, but she screamed and grabbed my hand, holding it with bone-crushing tighteness. After a moment, her yell seemed to form words and she was yelling, _"No! You're not separating me from him!"_

They tried for a few more moments before the creature that had spoken let out a wordless snarl and then growled, "Take them together."

Freya silenced, and we were shoved along until we reached a hole in the rock, then it seemed to yawn into a tunnel. We were pushed down into it, and after a ways they turned us left and then right, into a small cell. There was another great push at our backs, and we stumbled in just as bars slammed shut behind us.

From the shadows, the voice came again. "Do not try to use your magic to escape, little fools. This entire place is like a void for sorcery - try it, and it will consume every drop of power."

"Why don't you show yourself?" I challenged him softly, letting my usual arrogant smirk slide into place.

"Because mysterious means unknown, and unknown means confusion, and confusion means fear, and fear means obedience. I happen to be fond of obedience."  
Lightning quick, Freya lunged forward through the bars and latched onto the collar of the creature's armor, yanking him forward into the light. He had oddly reddish skin, with six fingers on each hand and a bizarre helmet covering his face. He hissed with anger.

"And I happen to be fond of apples, but we don't always get what we want, do we?" quipped Freya with her patented, cocky, _I'm-an-arrogant-badass_ look.

"You may call me Master," he growled, then barked an order. One of his warriors cracked a whip across Freya's wrist, and she let go with a stifled grunt of pain, withdrawing her hand inside the cell to cradle it against her chest, grimacing.  
"You didn't need to do that!" I yelled angrily, kicking the bars out of frustration.

Our host slid back into the shadows. "Obedience, remember, little godlings. These creatures are called the Chitauri. They serve me, and only me. With their help, I will _break you_."

He turned to go, but I called, "We need a better name than Master."

"Why?" he asked mockingly.

"Because we are a race where your name is your legacy. We must know who you are, not just who you wish to be," I replied, my hands curling into white-knuckled fists on the bars.

The creature probably frowned, and then said, "Alright, small god. You may know me as Welit, although that is not my name." He pronounced it "wuh-LEET."

I did not respond, and so he turned and left.

I turned back to Freya, who had sunk against the wall, swearing softly under her breath as she pressed her forearm against her abdomen. I skidded over to her, nearly falling on the uneven ground.

She managed a tiny smile. "I'm fine, Loki," she insisted weakly. "It's just a flesh wound."

"That's what you said when you nearly got your arm cut off," I muttered, remembering the incident:

_I watched with horror as the large creature's sword slammed into Freya's shoulder, nearly severing it from her body. She screamed and fell with a thud, leaning against a stump behind her. Her enemy brought his arm back for a killing blow._

_Swearing, I leaped over Freya's head (and also the stump she leaned against) and landed in front of her, parrying the death blow from her enemy, such an unfortunately huge creature. This realm seemed to breed them._

_After a few more thrusts and parries, I stabbed the thing with my staff and it fell backwards, disintegrating with a nasty hissing sound._

_I threw a shield up in a bubble around me and Freya, and another enemy dashed itself into oblivion against it, combusting when he touched it. _

_Then I turned and reached for Freya. She made a tiny noise of protest, and murmured weakly, "Loki, really, it's fine. It's just a flesh wound."_

_"It's _not_," I replied fiercely, pulling my tunic off over my head and tearing it into strips. I wrapped them tightly around her shoulder, wincing as she gave a hoarse sort of cry as I jolted the wound wrong. _

_Then I scooped her up as she fainted, cradling her carefully against my chest, my arms supporting her under her knees and shoulder blades. Her head rested against my shoulder, her uninjured arm hanging loose and her wounded one pressed gently between her body and mine. _

_With a harsh word in a forgotten language, I stepped away from the stump and shouted, "Heimdall! Open the bifrost!"_

_There was a little pause, and then rainbow light enveloped us. After a moment, I stepped quickly onto Heimdall's dais. The gatekeeper made a worried noise. "She looks bad," he said, and I resisted the urge to snarl at him._

_"I know," I replied tightly instead. "She needs medical attention."_

_"You might not be able to get there fast enough."_

_I hesitated a moment, then let loose a confident grin. "That's what you think." I dematerialized, and an instant later I became solid, with Freya, in the hospital wing. _

_I nearly passed out (it is no small feat to teleport two beings from one place to another), but I managed to stay on my feet. _

_A few nurses stared at us for a few moments, before I said weakly, "Help?"_

_They rushed forward and directed me to a bed, on which I gently laid Freya. She tossed, murmuring. I managed to catch my name in her words before the healers closed ranks around her, doctoring her wound and snapping orders at each other._

_I backed up a little, felt a bed hit the backs of my knees, and crumpled onto it. I thought for a few brief moments about Freya's blood which soaked my undershirt, but then I fell asleep from sheer exhaustion._

_A few hours later, I woke up with a start and sat up swiftly, turning reflexively to look at the bed that Freya laid on. She was awake, staring at me with her head turned so her hair fanned out on the pillow beneath her head. She gave me a small smile. "Hey."_

_"Hi," I whispered, and I couldn't help sighing with relief. "They fixed you."_

_"Yeah," she said softly, sitting up a little and blinking sleepily, stretching a bit while prodding her left shoulder gently with her right hand. "All nice and bandaged up."_

_"Good," I murmured, leaning my head back against the wall._

_"Thank you," she said, by way of an answer._

_"For what?" I asked, giving her a startled look._

_"You saved my life," she replied, fixing me with an honest look. _

_"Nah. The healers did," I told her, shifting uncomfortably, unable to take my green eyes off of her dark blue ones._

_She chuckled lightly. "They didn't bind my wound on the field. They didn't stop a monstrous ugly thing from killing me. They also didn't get me here." She looked around, surveying everything with faint amusement before bringing her gaze back to mine. "You saved my life. They just made sure I didn't lose it again."_

_I exhaled briefly, looking down at my hands. "You would've done the same for me."_

_"I would, at that," she agreed. "Although I might have needed some help carrying you."_

_We laughed together, our mirth ringing through the empty but somehow warm hall._

Now, Freya giggled briefly. "I remember that," she said. "You jumped epically over a stump to save my life, took your shirt off to bind my wounds, carried me home to Asgard, and teleported us to the hospital wing and nearly killed yourself with the effort." She frowned. "I forgot that you teleported. If I'd remembered, I probably wouldn't have lectured you on Vanaheim."

I laughed. "No, you would have lectured me anyway. Now let me see your arm."

She reluctantly extended it, and I let my breath out between my teeth in sympathy at the angry red weal across her forearm that was gently weeping blood.

I went to pull off a strip of cloth from my shirt, but Freya shook her head tightly. "We don't know how long we're going to be here, Loki, you might need that shirt."

I made a face and conjured a strip of bandages out of thin air, winding it gently around her arm. "There."

She smiled at me. "You know, when you saved my life then, I was secretly disappointed that you were wearing a shirt under that tunic."

I chortled softly. "Really?"

"Oh, yeah," she replied seriously. "After all, how much sexier is blood smeared across a bare chest as opposed to soaked through a shirt?"

We both started off into fits of giggles, the laughter echoing eerily off the rocks around us.


	9. Chapter 9

**Back to Freya's POV:**

Chapter 9:

I winced at my wrist, rubbing it carefully.

"It won't get better if you grab at it," Loki said absently from where he was trying to get comfortable against the wall.

"Do you think I don't know that?" I snapped, more out of pain than anything else. Every part of my body hurt.

We had been on the void world for nearly three weeks. We had agreed early on that we would help Welit storm Midgard, although Loki and I had made a secret pact not to do anything if we could help it. But Welit still insisted that we needed to learn "obedience," and so every day, on the hour, every hour, he sent a small team of Chitauri in to torture us.

It had started off with something like a backhand across the face, or a small scratch on one's leg. Nothing bigger than I might actually hurt myself in the equivilant by accident. And then it had progressed to kicks, to slaps, to vicious blows over our entire bodies. Only one of them could speak our language, and the creature had informed us that they would be coming with weapons today.

The worst part was, though, that we weren't tortured together.

That may seem odd, but what actually happened was that they shoved one of us to the back of the room while they tortured the other - and made us watch.

I swallowed as I heard the pounding of boots on the floor. I didn't bother looking up as the cell door swung open.

"You," growled the one who always spoke. I gathered that he was pointing at Loki, because I heard a soft groan from behind me as he stood up.

I felt a hand on my shoulder, forcing me to stand up and move to the other side of the room. I stood in the corner, sending worried glances at the nasty creature standing next to me.

Loki stood in the center of the tiny room, looking warily at the two other Chitauri that were standing near him. I noticed a medium-sized coil of leather in one of the creature's hands, and I spoke in a slightly wavering voice, "Loki, it's a whip."

He turned slightly towards me. "I know."

"On your knees, scum," snarled the one holding the whip. Loki warily sank into a kneeling position in front of him. He pulled his shirt off over his head, leaving his torso uncovered, and tossed it to me. I caught it with shaking fingers.

The one holding the whip circled Loki until it was standing at his back, then raised the whip. I stuffed my knuckles into my mouth and bit down, hard enough to draw blood, in order to keep from crying out as the whip cracked across Loki's back. He didn't make any other sound but a grunt as a huge red cut formed diagonally across his back.

The creature did it again, and again, until I had closed my eyes. The only thing I was conscious of was the sound of the leather hitting flesh and the noises that Loki was making that had progressed from grunts to groans, and were now moving into pitiful cries that seemed to escape him despite his will.

After a few moments more, the Chitauri seemed to disappear. I was no longer conscious of their existance, and so I cracked one eyelid open.

I stared into the middle of the room where Loki still knelt, bent over at the waist with his face in his hands. I resisted the urge to cry as I stared at his bleeding, torn-up back. I counted fifteen angry red marks, gently weeping blood.

I walked slowly over to him and sank to my knees next to him. He slowly uncurled, and I noted a few solitary tear tracks down either side of his unforunately grimy face. I reached out and conjured a few rolls of bandages - since Loki had conjured the same for my arm on our first day, we had realized that we could perform only the smallest magics. Nothing so large as a full healing could be done, and I mourned that as I carefully wound the bandage strips around his entire torso, from his shoulders to his lower back, wincing as he gave a harsh cry when I rubbed a wound the wrong way.

When I finished, Loki sat up a little more and reached for his shirt. As I handed it to him, he noted my bleeding hand. He forced a smile onto his face. "That hard to watch, eh?" he rasped.

"Loki," I growled as he painfully pulled his shirt back on.

"I'm kidding," he said softly. He made to turn around, but I made him stop when he winced.

"Just lean back," I whispered. I scooted back slightly to lean against the wall, and he leaned his head down, resting it in my lap with a soft moan.  
"I love you, Loki," I whispered, stroking his hair out of his face.

He breathed out slightly. "I know, Freya. I love you, too."

**Feelsy, my favorite. For you, Panwyn, 'cause as far as I can tell, you're the only one reading this. That's okay, tho, 'cuase it's basically an ongoing Christmas present for you.**


End file.
